Steve Kerr was right before the game: "This is all about the Knicks." But while Kerr went on to rave about how the Knicks have looked better than the Celtics all series, this is about something else: the Knicks inability to get their offense going. After having the 3rd most efficient offense in the regular season paired with the fourth worst efficient defense among playoff teams, Knicks coach Mike Woodson has chosen to shorten his playoff rotation focusing more on defense. Which is fine and got ME raving last week:

That was - beautiful!

I know, I know... winning a quarter 13-12 doesn't sound THAT pretty, but for Knicks fans it was, because the team had already done the damage to the Celtics in the third quarter and held Boston to a franchise low 23 points in the second half - after holding them to a then franchise low 25 points in the second half in Game 1.

The problem is that while the Knicks have now the most efficient defense in the playoffs, their offense has gone lost. Entering tonight's game, the Knicks were 13th among the playoff teams in offensive efficiency, the one team with a worse defense (edit2: of course it's "offense" at this spot) that is still alive of course being the Celtics. One main reason is to exclude the stretch fours Steve Novak and Chris Copeland basically from the lineup in favor of more minutes distributed between the Knicks guards and wings and basically going with Carmelo at the four for his full playing time instead of switching it up with him moving occasionally to the three like he did in the regular season. Woodson's mantra of having two point guards on the floor is fine, when you have the shooters spaced out, not THAT fine, if you isolate on every other possession.

- All the positives surrounding this team just a week ago feel like ages ago.- Carmelo Anthony is now shooting under 40 percent (39.4) from the field for the series. The three point shooting of his that lead to one of the most efficient offensive regular seasons in his career is gone (0-13 combined in the two possible close-out games, 28.6 percent overall), so once again he gives his critics fodder with playing subpar in the playoffs in comparison to his regular season heroics. Which sucks.- J.R. Smith is shooting it a little bit better (43% from the field, 33.3 from three; edit: my bad, he is shooting it as badly: he is now at 38.3 percent from the field...), but not getting to the line enough, which means he is also not playing as efficient as he was in the regular season and has missed a game with a suspension. Followed by talking the talk - "the series would be over, I would be playing golf today" - without walking the walk.- After Melo went 10-35 in game 4 on his mission to close the series out as the ultimate hero, Smith and Melo combined for 11-38 with less trips to the free throw line (12 instead of 20).- Prigioni is now shooting 5 of 18 for the series, Kidd 3 of 16.- The pick-and-roll game that opened up everything during the start of the season is if not dead at least on life-support now. With no one in the main rotation shooting it deadly from the outside other than Iman Shumpert, that might not change without altering the rotation.- The Knicks lost all three first halves in their home games against the Celtics this postseason.

Here we are again. Waiting for a savior. Someone to save us from our offensive woes. Will it be Woody deciding to play one of Novak or Copeland (who combined for 30.5 minutes during the regular season instead of their combined 13 minutes in the playoffs) more to open the floor or do we have to wait on Amare Stoudemire to check back in, to open it up from the inside instead of drawing defenders out? Or will Woodson find another solution from within the main eight men rotation?

Only one thing is for sure: the defensive pressure of the opponent will not get worse from now on.

Game 6.

Last edited by spree#8 on May 2, 2013, 7:57 am, edited 2 times in total.

Exactly. This is on Melo and Woodson. It's not just about shots made or missed for me right now. It's about the overall lack of urgency we saw tonight as if the team wasn't prepared. I saw dude walking up the court, sulking. They just had zero swagger for a team that talked so much trash before the game. If they can win in six everyone can look back and say that perhaps this is the Celtics team that took Miami to six, we expected them to win five, we slept on them and they won six. Game over. But the way they played tonight you don't even feel like they can win game six.

On Woody. Where is the 3 screen and roll play, the scissors play and the horns? We need some of that to attack the basket and create an opening. The Timeout plays on this game resulted to shooting 3balls that didnt go in. This is not good coaching.

Tired of Chandler's butter finger hands. Can't seem to hold the ball. We need to pull out Kenyon from Garnett. He is always in foul trouble. He can't get his game and energy going. Most fouls being called are off ball.

It just struck me that building your offense around Melo and JR Smith is stupid. You can't win in the playoffs with them. If the knicks lose this series...I don't know what to even say. I won't be able to watch the regular season ever again. It is meaningless. You gotta respect the Celtics, they are just so tough.

If the Celtics win game 6 they will win game 7. The knicks are scared now. You can feel it. They are really doubting themselves. Woodson better make some serious adjustments or this series will be over and I will be ashamed to call myself a Knick fan.

I didn't read the game thread, but is anyone else blown away by the officiating? Sure, we couldn't make shots last night, but the refs took us out of the game way before that was a problem.

Melo gets hacked on almost EVERY FUCKING POSSESSION! Garnett grabs and sets illegal screens EVERY FUCKING POSSESSION! I'm going insane this morning! The fix was in. JR and K-Mart had the refs pissed off before the tipoff.

Mr. Glass wrote:I didn't read the game thread, but is anyone else blown away by the officiating? Sure, we couldn't make shots last night, but the refs took us out of the game way before that was a problem.

Melo gets hacked on almost EVERY FUCKING POSSESSION! Garnett grabs and sets illegal screens EVERY FUCKING POSSESSION! I'm going insane this morning! The fix was in. JR and K-Mart had the refs pissed off before the tipoff.